Transduction
by UserOminous
Summary: Jacob and his girlfriend were just on their way home when he's abducted by Deceptions. He finds himself thrown in the middle of a viscous war between two robotic, alien clans. Used as an experiment in the Deceptions' masterplan to create the ultimate army, Jacob's mind is transferred into the husk of a Cybertronian body. Now all that Jacob wants is to escape what fate's given him.
1. Chapter 1 Abduction

**Abduction**

* * *

Jacob shivered. Hugging his arms tightly around his body, he would watch as the bitter cold turned his hot breath into a cloud of frost. Lifting his hand he gingerly rubbed the back of his mitten on his frozen, rosy cheeks. Jacob glanced to his right and watched as the figure next to him mimicked his actions. "Chilly?" he'd quip, wrapping an arm around her shoulders to offer up some of his own body heat.

The blonde-haired girl gazed back at him with brilliant blue eyes," I'm okay," she'd breathe quietly. Then she would rest her head on his shoulder," You did great today, Jacob. You were amazing."

The person in question would chuckle and blush a bright red in response," I couldn't have done that well without you, Catty."

The game was still vividly imprinted in Jacob's mind. Every detail, every second was replaying in his head over and over again.

It was the hockey championship game for first place title in the state. The score was 0 to 0 with only 15 seconds on the clock in the 3rd period.

Jacob could recall how he strategically snatched the puck from the other team's forward and wasted no time in racing down the ice afterwards. His skates pounded the ice like stones and his face was dripping in hot sweat. Glancing at the timer, he saw the digits and read that 7 seconds were left. As Jacob neared the defenders, he faked them out and had dangled the puck through their legs, leaving them in his dust. Time seemed to slow down as he approached the goalie. The goalie was bent down in his squatting position and had his glove readily held up to catch the puck. Eyes darting left and right, Jacob had located his target of where he wanted to shoot the puck. Leaning on his stick, Jacob snapped the black disk like bullet and aimed it for the top right corner.

Everyone in the stadium grew silent as their eyes followed the puck's path through the air. The goalie jumped from his spot and moved to catch the puck, but it was too late. The puck whizzed by his hemet and hit the back of the net.

Right after that moment, the clock struck 0 and the end-game buzzer went off. The audience had roared. They leaped from their seats, hooping and hollering for the goal and game victory. The sirens would spin around and wail their cries of victory. Jacob's teammates screamed with joy from the bench and had climbed over the boards to go celebrate with their star. But Jacob hadn't payed any attention to that. His focus was all on someone else; Catherine.

He remembered her cheering, her blonde, curly hair bouncing up and down in rhythem with her movements, and how a big smile was plastered on her face.

'God, Catherine was so stunning in that moment', Jacob thought.

Seconds later he recalled how his teammates had swarmed him and had lifted him over their heads. The championship trophy was given out and everyone passed it around to admire it's golden cup. After the arena was cleared out, Jacob was even confronted by a college scout. They told him how impressed they were by his skilled and would be interested in having him play for them with a full scholarship. Jacob was so stunned. This had come from the college that he always had dreamed of attending.

What a day.

"A lot on your mind?" Cathrine chirped, bringing the star back into reality.

"Oh, heh, yeah I guess," Jacob smirked. Clasping his hand into hers, the two moved on through the night. Only the sound of the white snow crunching softly beneath their feet could be heard.

Jacob deeply sighed. Closing his eyes, he inhaled a breath of the crisp air and opened his mouth to let the falling snowflakes melt on his tongue. Everything was perfect in that moment. Jacob had everything he could have ever wanted: he had a beautiful, smart girlfriend, he had a potential scholarship for the school of his dreams and just a few hours ago, he had even scored the winning goal in his hockey championship game. It was perfect. If Jacob could have had the power to freeze time, now would have been his choice.

A giggle was heard and Jacob opened his eyes to find Catherine covering her mouth and stifling a laugh," You look ridiculous," she snorted, referring to how he had outstretched his tongue in such a childish manner.

"Eh, whatever," Jacob shrugged, turning back towards the open sky to catch more flakes. Laughing, Catherine joined in and did the same," I haven't done this in years!" she'd laugh.

Jacob laughed along with her. Tilting back his head he let himself relax and fully take in his surroundings. The couple were walking in the middle of the woods. They were on their way home after Jacob's game. Rather than stay by the road, they both had decided to take a romantic short cut through the woods. It was already late at night and now only their phone flashlights and the moon above lit their path before them.

Jacob's smile suddenly fell from his face. Stopping his tracks, he'd take a look around," What was that..?" he whispered. Jacob could have sworn he heard a strange sound coming from within the woods.

Noticing that her boyfriend had halted, Catherine smirked and put her hands on her hips," What is it? What's wrong?" Jacob paused and surveyed the darkness beyond the trees around them. He narrowed his eyes," I... I thought I heard something," he'd mutter, skeptical about whether he was imagining things or not.

"It was probably a squirrel, Jaayy. Now come on, it's late and I'm cold," Catherine huffed with impatience. She would rub her arms and shiver as emphasis for her words.

Jacob still wasn't convinced. What he heard definitely wasn't a squirrel," Stay here by the path, Catty. I'll go investigate." without waiting for a response, Jacob trudged off and disappeared into the forest.

"Jacob!" Catherine cried as she watched his shadow fade into the darkness," Don't leave me here alone!" But her cries were for naught and Jacob was already gone.

...

Jacob looked back from the direction where he had come. The darkness was so thick, he couldn't even see Catherine's figure standing in the distance anymore. 'She's so going to kill me when I come back', Jacob dreaded. What was he thinking? Leaving her alone in the woods for a goose chase? The worried boyfriend shook the thoughts from his head. No. He was positive he had heard something strange coming from this direction. Something... unearthly.

Pushing away some foliage, Jacob stepped into an open break in the trees. Before him, an empty clearing was shown. Nothing was there. Doubt seeped into the teenager's mind once more and Jacob felt himself regret his actions. God, he was an idiot. He guessed he was just imagining things after all.

Turning away, Jacob started to leave the clearing when suddenly a bright beam of light flashed down upon him. An arm quickly shot up to shield his eyes from the blinding, white light," W-what is this?" he stuttered, blatantly confused at what was going on. Squinting he could only identify a large- no- very large figure that was the behind the source of light," W-what is t- that?!" Jacob cried, feeling panic swell up inside of him.

The humongous creature stepped towards him, its footfalls sending tremors into the Earth.

Jacob felt himself freeze in terror. The hairs on his body stood on end. He tried to run. He tried to escape. Every muscle and instinct in his body screamed at him to run, but whatever Jacob did, they just wouldn't budge. Everything was happening so fast. Jacob just stood there like a deer in head lights.

The giant being bent down. It raised and stretched out an open hand at Jacob. It was going to take him. As the claw-like hand got closer and closer, the teenager could feel his heart beat pounding faster. It was so loud, Jacob could clearly hear the blood pump in his ears.

But before anything else could happen, Jacob's vision blurred and he felt himself falling. In the next thing he knew, his cheek was buried in a foot of snow. The cold snow bit his cheek and sent fire-hot splinters into his skin. Before his eyes rolled into the back of his head, Jacob caught glance of the creature's shadow. Then his eyes closed and Jacob was swallowed up by darkness.

* * *

Jacob blinked. Instead of feeling that familiar, soft mattress under his body or thick blankets topped on him or his cushy pillows, Jacob's cheek now touched an unfamiliar cold metal. Rousing himself into consciousness, Jacob slowly sat up and rubbed his eyes," Where... am I?" he drowsily asked and was suddenly reminded of the former events that occurred before he had passed out.

Putting two and two together, the teenager knew something was definitely wrong. Jacob's head snapped up and he quickly stumbled to his feet to investigate his unknown environment. When he saw what was around him, the confused boy could only gasp in shock.

He was trapped in an enormous, cylinder-shaped container. Glass circled the walls of it and the top and bottom were made of some kind of metal. Rushing to the thick glass, Jacob placed his palms on its surface to peer through. With his eyes darting this way and that, Jacob found that his prison was located in some kind of chamber, but everything was ginormous! Strangely like they were fit for a giant... Looking around the room, Jacob saw many alien-like bobbles laying around. Somehow he was able to identify a chair, door and tables where many strange devices were scattered about on. Beside the desk on which his jar was placed on, a weird looking machine took up half the room. Feeling very minuscule, Jacob thought it was like he was stuck into the famous Jack and the Beanstalk fairytale, except that now everything was futurized.

"Where am I?" Jacob restated, only feeling more confused than the first time around when he had said it. A shiver went up his spine when he thought about former events," Was... I abducted by aliens?" The conclusion forced Jacob to place a hand over his mouth. He was getting sick to his stomach just thinking about it," Oh my God, please take me home. I'm going insane aren't I? I can't be abducted by aliens- that's crazy!"

The large door at the end of the room suddenly slid open in response and a towering red figure stepped through. Jacob couldn't believe what he was seeing and had to blink a few times to register it. The creature was some kind of... humongous alien robot.

"Yes... right this way, the specimen is over here," the red mechanoid spoke.

Another robot would emerge through the doorway. Colored in grey, it was even taller than the red bot," This better not be a waste of my time, Knockout." the new robot growled with a deep voice. His red eyes were terrifying.

Jacob's knees quivered as they grew weak. What was going on was beyond him. This had to be some kind of dream- yes, he was dreaming. It must be a nightmare! Jacob squeezed his eyes shut and silently prayed to wake up in his bed when he opened them.

The one referred to as Knockout hastily turned to Jacob and peered down at him with glowing red eyes," Ah, of course sir." Clearing his throat, the robot would pick up a tablet," Ahem, specimen H19 was captured on the planet Earth; located in sector-"

"Just cut to the chase already, Knockout." The grey robot snappily interrupted," Start up the machine," he ordered.

"Yes... Megatron," Knockout said, obeying with a hint of resentment in his voice.

Cracking open an eye, all of Jacob's hope seemed to deflate out of him. He was still there, trapped inside that damn jar. The red mechanoid bent down and leveled his face with Jacob's. With a surprised yelp Jacob stumbled back from the glass and felt his knees buckle beneath him.

The red robot let out an annoyed huff, almost like it was disappointed in Jacob's resilience," A word of advise earthling; don't die. Not like every other specimen I've had to go through already. My reputation is on the line here, fleshy." His words were laid thick with sarcasm. Standing back up, Knockout would unscrew the lid on Jacob's container and reach down to pluck him from the ground with his metallic claws.

Jacob whimpered. Death? Was he going to die tonight? There wasn't much else he could do to object. The creature had him hanging firmly in its claws and as he saw the ground get farther and farther, Jacob would begin to feel sick to his stomach again," What are you going to do to me?" he croaked, but barely any sound came out for the robot to hear his words.

The small, helpless human would watch as he was carried to a different contraption. It was the humongous machine he had spotted earlier. With wires running this way and that, it was horribly complex in design. Out of the corner of his eye Jacob could see that on the other side of this machine from where his jar was located, there stood another robot, yet... this one was different. It was dark and lifeless. Was it dead? Jacob's attention would quickly turn away, however, when he was laid down on a flat platform. Iron cuffs were snapped around his wrists and ankles, immobilizing him. The teenager grimaced as he struggled against his restraints. They were tight and pinched his skin. A helmet-like cap was was fitted around his head and tightened. Then strange striped cables were attached.

The robot called Knockout moved away and began inputting something into a computer screen," Everything is ready Megatron." he'd finally say, stepping back to observe the full machine," On your command." The red mechanoid hovered a pointed finger above his tablet, ready to press the switch.

Jacob's eyes widened. His breath would begin to hasten as he'd start to panic. 'Oh God, oh God, oh God. I'm going to die!' Jacob squeezed his eyes shut in an attempt to hide from what was going to happen. He wished he could be anywhere, but there in that moment.

"Turn it on." Megatron ordered.

Knockout pressed his tablet's screen.

In seconds Jacob's body was struck with a thousand volts of electricity. Instantly the lighting pain was stabbed through him and into his heart. His body seized and contorted in such a manner that was not normal for any normal human. If it weren't for the restraints, Jacob surely would have snapped his spine with the way he arched his back. Jacob tried to scream out in pain, but the sound of voltage moving through his head was so loud, he couldn't tell if he even was.

Never had the boy ever felt torture in all his life like he was dealt with in that fleeting instant.

Then suddenly it was over. The pain was gone and his conscience was seeming to fade away.

His shriveled body hung charred in its chains, sizzling from the momentous torture it received. Before his life ended, Jacob made one last useless effort to survive:

"I... don't want... to die..."

Finally Jacob's world went black and all feeling in his body died.

* * *

Thanks for reading!

The story isn't over, so please follow it for more chapters and leave a review!

Any and all comments are appreciated.

Thanks again


	2. Chapter 2 Disjunction

**Disjunction**

* * *

All he saw was darkness. Jacob was trapped in an endless void of space. The black matter stretched endlessly in all directions. Jacob tried moving around, but is was to no avail. It would appear like he had no body anymore. He still had sight and still had all his other senses, yet he couldn't move. He was just... a lonely consciousness or, rather, a soul with its ties severed from its body. A motor without a machine to run.

'Is this what it's like to be dead?' Jacob pondered. His words echoed through the nothingness, repeating 'dead' back at him until it completely faded away.

It was chilly and the darkness made him frightened, but then a light appeared way off in the distance. It was as if it were daylight at the end of a long tunnel.

Curiously Jacob tried moving towards it, but with only his soul and no caspule, it was like swimming through honey. Nevertheless, Jacob continued onward. He wasn't about to be discouraged so easily.

Steadily he'd float over towards it. As he got closer, the light grew bigger. 'What is this?' Jacob would say reaching out with his soulful form to touch the bright, golden rays. When he plunged his hand into the light, it felt warm and comforting to the touch.

It reminded him of home and how on cold winter days he'd snuggle close to the fireplace. The cracking fire would smell of burning pine needles. Even now, Jacob could sense that all too familar smell. He was back to when he was young and innocent and when nothing else mattered but staying wrapped inside his quilted blanket.

Leaning in closer, Jacob wanted the light to wash over the entirety of his soul. He wanted to experience his youth again. To be at peace with himself. 'Is this what heaven feels like?' Jacob wondred, but didn't dwell on the notion. Soon all of Jacob was engulfed by the light. Every nerve in his consciousness shivered with nostalgia. He was calm and relaxed. It made him truly happy. Jacob knew that he could stay like this for forever.

Suddenly the wonderful sensation was gone and Jacob snatched away from the light. He felt himself being dragged downward, deeper into the miserable darkness. No, stop! He'd cry. He was reaching- clawing to get back up to the light, but something was weighing him down. It prevented him from fighting back as it clung to him and dug its claws into Jacob's entity. 'Please! Don't take me back!' Jacob would beg. He was helplessly plummeted back into the nothingness. Looking up, Jacob watched the light get farther and farther away as he fell.

"I don't want to go back!" Jacob desperately screamed in vain. He knew fully well of what was going on.

He was being swallowed up by the void and being forced back into reality.

"Please..."

* * *

Jacob fell from his berth and and hit his knees against the floor with a loud thunk," Oww..." he groaned, lifting a hand to rub his sore head. His brain had a splitting headache and all his former memories before he passed out were fuzzy.

"Aha!" Jacob suddenly heard someone say. He'd wince from the sudden outburst of sound as it made his ears ring.

"It worked! It really works!" The excited voice cried with joy like a small child on Christmas. It would then seem to realize their informality and straighten themselves out with an embarrassed clearing of their throat," Ahem. Megatron, I'd like to introduce to you the fruits of my labor- a machine that can transfer one's spark into another body! I call it: Transduction. Just think of the possibilities that one can acquire from this phenomenal invention. I assure you, this very device will change the war entirely. It will all be for the better of the deception cause, Megatron!"

Jacob slowly would crack open an eye to get an understanding of what was happening. He couldn't recall much after his abduction. Everything was all just a haze and waking to this headache and strange conversation was certainly confusing. "Ah!" He yelped. When Jacob peeked through his eyes, his head recoiled from he saw. Something was wrong with his eyes! Instead of his normal vision, he witnessed what appeared to be some kind of window that had multiple gadgety, pop-ups all over it. It closely reassembled the view of back when he played a first person, shooter video game. "What is this?" Jacob asked, blinking rapidly to get the weird pop-ups out of his eyes.

"And what is this use of this, Knockout?" Another gruff voice inquired. Seemingly skeptical of Knockout's promises. They wouldn't seem to notice Jacob's disorientation.

"I'm glad you asked," Knockout responded sounding arrogant over his achievement," Why with this contraption we can reanimate sparkless corpses from the battle front and recycle them into brand new soldiers! It's so simple, yet so genius! We'll have an infinite supply of troops!"

"And you plan on transferring the sparks of other, inferior species to host these bodies?" Megatron critiqued, far less thrilled about the idea.

Knockout would pause, mulling over his next choice of words," You see, Megatron, I've tried every other solution. Dark energon proved to be quite... troublesome and it's impossible to reacquire a cybertronian's spark once it's lost, so I looked at it another way- why not borrow the consciousness of another species? Of course afterwards we'll have to brainwash their intelligence and all that other yada yada to make them effective, but that's beside the main point. Using this machine will be the future to winning this war."

Finding that it was useless to get the blips out of his eyesight, Jacob turned his attention over to the two robots. He didn't recognize them much from before, but as soon as he had got a good look at them, his memories came slamming back into him like a train. "Oh God..." Jacob weakly moaned, clasping a hand over his mouth. He was starting to feel sick as he remembered before how agonizing his torture was and how he was supposed to die.

Did he survive the electrocution, then? What was the red robot talking about with the machine? All it did was hurt him and that wasn't something to celebrate...

Jacob narrowed his eyes at his captors. For some reason they were smaller than before. In fact, when he looked around, Jacob found that the entire room had shrunk to his fit size. "Wha-?" Then, realization began to seep into Jacob's mind. It wasn't that they were smaller- he was bigger!

"Yes..." Megatron said, rubbing his chin deep in thought," This could be useful to the deception cause..."

Jacob's gaze fell down at his figure and if they could've, his eyes would have popped out of his head. He was no longer himself or in his own body! All of his skin, limbs and clothes were gone and replaced with a robot form, similar to the creatures standing before him. Quickly Jacob's brain scrambled for answers. This was insane! He thought back to what had happened before he passed out and connected his Freaky Friday body-swap with the machine and electricity. Of course, it was the machine! Somehow the device had put him into a mechanoid's body and Jacob knew his robot abductors were the ones to blame.

"What did you do to me?!" jacob cried with rage. His body trembled with anger. These aliens had snatched him from his home- his girlfriend- his perfect life and had used him as a lab rat in one of their insane experimentations. Feeling the rage course through him, Jacob wanted nothing else, but to take his revenge. Abruptly, he tried to stand on his feet and attack them, but being in this different, alien physique, Jacob staggered and fell over, hitting the floor with a loud crash. His short revolt had come to an unceremonious end.

The robots would towards Jacob, finally paying some attention to the commotion he made. Megatron would frown disapprovingly," You're 'perfect soldier' undoubtedly need some work," He growled. The grey robot would then turn around to head out through the hatch, but he'd stop at the last second. Opening his mouth, he gave Knockout his final thoughts," But I will approve of it, Knockout. I'll allow you to work on this experiment longer. For now, send this prototype to the battle front and watch its capabilities in battle. From there you'll see to perfecting other remedies about them." At that, Megatron was done and exited the room.

Knockout appeared like he wanted to talk back, but he gave up and dipped his head in obedience," Indeed sir." he'd say, keeping his head lowered until he heard the click of the door closing behind Megatron. Positive his commander was gone, Knockout turned to his sad product, immobilized on the floor," I Congratulate you, Earthing, You've managed to be the first specimen to ever live through my experiment and even then, you've managed to disappoint Megatron." he said with thick derision.

Jacob groaned. He had hit his head pretty hard in the fall and that in addition with his former headache, was a recipe for pain. That and his robot figure felt sore all over.

"Nevertheless, my invention worked and with a few tweaks here and there, I'll get her to perfection." Knockout chirped, gliding over to Jacob's sprawled body. A pouty look would flash across his face in mockery," A pity you will be exterminated on the battle front soon. After all, your very existence will revolutionize the war."

Gritting his teeth, Jacob looked up at his captor with a growing rage," Fuck you." Jacob would had spit at the bot, but found that his mouth contained no saliva.

The red mechaniod let out a sly laugh," What was that? An Earthling insult? You're quite the rowdy fleshy, aren't you?" He leaned over Jacob and gave him a terrible grin. A slim, metal rod, was chosen from among the other trinkets on a nearby table and Knockout waved the object around his prisoner's face," Any last farewells or questions, before we part, fleshy?"

The fury boiling up inside Jacob instantly vanished and was replaced by fear and confusion once more. He had one question that instantly came to mind," Wha- what are you?"

Knockout would laugh again, only this time it was more menacing. Locking eye contact with Jacob, the android would look deeply into them with his glowing crimson eyes, "I'm a deception."

Suddenly the device in Knockout's grasp would activate and four prongs would slide out from its one end. Blue electricity sporadically danced around each tip. Threateningly, he held the baton over Jacob. "Au revoir, H19." he bid, jabbing the taser into Jacob's side.

Jacob's body would jump in response to the device, shuddering as if he was having a seizure. Critical alerts would flash across Jacob's monitor, warning him that he was intaking an overload of electricity. The poor teenager didn't even get enough time to scream out in pain. Within moments, his consciousness went under and the boy returned to darkness.

* * *

Thank you all for your reviews! Please, leave another! I enjoy reading them!

Any and all comments are appreciated.

It was quite funny you thought he was going to be transferred into Cliffjumper, I had a good laugh out of that! Poor Cliffjumper is always the one that dies, huh? XD Not that I'm denying anything... yet.

I also apologize as this chapter is shorter than the last, but I just couldn't find anything else that I wanted to say. xP

Stay tuned for more chapters and follow the story!

Thanks again. :)


	3. Chapter 3 Introduction

**Introduction**

* * *

Jacob awoke to a loud rumbling sound of which was all that filled his audial senses. Jacob would groan inwardly. Every joint in his body ached horribly. His head was rolled forward so that his chin lazily rested against his chest and cracking an eye, he peered down at his feet. Jacob found he was strapped into a chair. Two tight straps were crossed over his heart, creating an 'X' and in the center, they were buckled together with a metal clasp. Gazing down at his unfamiliar metal body, the past events would instantly replay through Jacob's mind.

He was abducted, then tortured, and finally had his mind transferred into another body. A robotic, alien body.

And now...?

"Hey! Everyone! Looks like the dud-head is awake! Primus, mech... You were out for so long, we could have sworn you were offline." Someone spoke with a humorous tone.

Jacob gaze snapped upwards in the direction of the unknown speaker. Taking in his surroundings, it appeared that he now sat in a bleak, windowless room. Judging form the way the walls shook and rattled, hinted that Jacob was bound inside some kind of convertible. A long thin light bulb hung from the ceiling and stretched across the rectangular room. It flickered on and off in rhythm to the vehicle's sudden jolts of movement. Two rows of seats, similar to his own, lined the long walls on either side of the . Each were filled with their own individual robot that was strapped to their own chair.

All their eyes were on Jacob.

"The lights are on, but no one is home," cracked the same person and everyone else in the caravan responded with a roar of laughter. Finding the source of the commotion, Jacob's eyes fell on the bot sitting across from him. This _decepticon-_ as he learned these aliens were called- was a pale green robot and was much larger than the rest of the bots, so much so, that his fat rump occupied two seats," You must be quite the celebrity, mech, 'cuz you should have seen the entourage of vehicons that escorted you in here." He continued with a thick blunt sticking out from his mouth.

Jacob could only stare back at the bot with blank eyes. All of this attention he was receiving, was something entirely different to what he expected," I- I'm sorry, but what exactly is going on?" the lost teenager squeaked, a little intimidated by all of them. He was a little lost what what was going on. Wasn't he abducted? Why was he being treated like the newbie on a new hockey team? Like he was one of them? Jacob blinked owlishly. ... _and why was that robot smoking a cigar?_

A chorus of laughter erupted from the group of robots," Did you hit your head too hard or somethin', mech?" The smoking bot quipped, leaning as far forward as his belt permitted him," Maybe you have a loose screw... but please tell me you don't; we already have so many of _those_ types." he paused to let the others chuckle at his joke. As the laughter died away, the bot straightened himself out and addressed Jacob again with more curtesy," But where are my manners? The name is Fuseload," he'd say stretching out a hand for Jacob to shake.

Gingerly, the timid teen took up his offer and placed his hand into his. Jacob's eyes ogled at the sheer size of Fuseload's paw. Even though his mind was swapped into this giant form, Jacob's size still couldn't compare to the other robots.

But Fuseload didn't seem to notice Jacob's amazed expression and instead gestured to the other bots sitting around them," Then there are the other mechs. That's Orbit, Sawbit, Targetcharger..." As Fuseload continued to ramble more names off, some smiled and gave a small wave as their name was called, while others kept to themselves and only politely dipped their head in acquaintance. Finally after finishing his list, Fuseload inhaled a bit of his cigar and blew out a puff of smoke," Well that's our crew, and what's your name, sparkling?" he said as the smoke wafted into Jacob's face.

Jacob refrained from waving at the thick smog as it stun his eyes. It was no wonder why the shuttle reeked so bad," I, uh..." Jacob would stop to ponder his answer . It was obvious that this group of deceptions hadn't a clue that he wasn't one of them. They treated like he were one of their own. Mulling over it for a moment, Jacob quickly figured it'd be best to maintain that relationship. The teen refrained from thinking back to what Knockout had told him before. He didn't want to accept that he was sent to this place to die. But whatever was going to happen- wherever this shuttle was taking him- Jacob knew he had to do anything to survive... and that meant he needed to fit in. To raise no suspicion of not being one of them.

Being put on the spot, Jacob racked his brain to come up with a name that was similar to their style," My, uh, name is..." Eyes flicking left to right, Jacob searched for any clue to what he should say. By the sounds of things, their system usually worked based off pairing two objects with each other. Jacob's mind drifted and thought to his favorite sport- hockey.

"...Iceblade?" Jacob finally said, unsure if his answer would be accepted.

Everyone let out a hearty laugh in reaction to Jacob's sheepish face," Are you asking me?! This little spark is hilarious!" Fuseload remarked, nudging the robot next to him with a free elbow. Off aside, the pale-grey robot, known as Sawbit, would return Fuseload with a distasteful look, rubbing their sore arm in consequence to his partner's careless action.

"D- did you say this was a crew?" Jacob piped up, trying to change the subject. The adept teen realized that he had to chose his questions carefully now, any mistake only drew more suspicion towards him. For now it was only a matter of investigating as much information as he could out of them.

Taking his query more seriously, Fuseload cleared his throat," Right you are, spark! This is battle unit W04, but we're known by our unofficial designation; The Clashers!." Fuseload jazzed his hands in effect of his last words. Then, puffing out his chest he continued," We Clashers have been brethren from the moment our unit was formulated. All of us have ever since been put through everything together; the military academy, training and many, many battles! Believe it or not, spark, but you're looking at a full fledged, highly recognized squadron of the deception legion!" Fuseload tapped a small medallion attached over her breast," This medal is proof of that. It was bestowed upon me by Megatron himself!" The pin was small for a medal, yet it appeared to be a very special belonging to the robot. It was well polished and sparkled brightly in contrast to Fuseload's murky chest. It was probably the cleanest thing attached to Fuseload, considering how every other surface of his body appeared to be covered in a dark grime.

Jacob couldn't help, but having an aching pity for the robot. Jacob had the suspicion that Fuseload was living a false reality, considering the fact that the whole team sat in a poorly conditioned convertible. That or the standards weren't very high in the first place. Not to mention how bad each of their hygiene was when Jacob compared it the red mechaniod, Knockout, he met in his last encounters with the aliens. The more Jacob thought about it, the more he realized how starch white and clean everything had been in that robot's lab.

"Now that it's come up, everyone," the overweight robot continued, drawing Jacob's attention back to the present,"I, Fuseload, as the officer of this platoon, would like to formally welcome Iceblade as our newest member." In response the circle of decepticons let out a uniform cheer and whoops. One dark blue bot sitting next to Jacob punched him on the shoulder," Welcome to the crew!" he commemorated. Jacob recalled that his name was Orbit.

Suddenly the moving vehicle lurched, causing everyone to cling onto their seats in order to prevent their bodies from falling with momentum. As the rusty convertible slowed to a stop, it sputtered its last dying breaths and finally fell quiet. "We're here!" Fuseload announced. Unbuckling himself, he rose from his seat and strolled over to one end of the compartment where Jacob saw the wall was one big door.

Jacob's stomach flipped over anxiously, dreading over whatever he'd witness behind that door. Closing his eyes, Jacob had retained his conversation with Knockout, like it were still fresh in his mind. _'He had said I'd be sent to the battlefront... to be killed...'_ Jacob recalled. His head swerved left to right to examine the faces of every other bot. None of them seemed even remotely nervous like how he was.

"Alright, so let's go over the rundown of our orders." Fuseload started, plucking a small device from the wall. Fiddling with its components, he flipped a switch and a wide holographic projector flashed out of it. The blue-lit hologram showed the layout of a city. Wasting no time, Fuseload jumped into discussing things," We have to hurry, so I'll make this short." Fuseload waved a hand over to the left of the screen where a large structure was located," As we speak there is a battle on going to try and capture this autobot base, located in the outskirts of Praxus," the bot then pointed at a red blip on the screen, a little aways from the autobot base," We are here. According to my orders, the current troops stationed there are holding out, but are in need of backup, so our assignment is to get over there and help them." Stepping back, Fuseload pressed another button and the hologram disappeared back into the small device," Any questions?"

The atmosphere had a sudden change to it. The bots around Jacob murmured to each other and shuffled their feet in an unsettled manner. "Praxus- are you kidding me? That place is a deathtrap! We'll be lucky to make it back with even half our crew!" Jacob overheard someone hiss quietly.

Jacob thought back to when some military recruiters had visited his high school back on Earth. At the time, Jacob had boasted to Catherine, his girlfriend, about how serving in the military would have been such a cakewalk. Now, Jacob couldn't keep his lip from quivering. If the war hardened soldiers around him were tense about this Praxus city, then it all was bad news for him.

Noticing his comrades distress, Fuseload frowned and crossed his arms," Yes, I know Praxus is... concerning for you all, but this is the glory we've all been trained for. I didn't want to tell you all this now because I wanted to wait until we arrived there, but these orders have come from Megatron himself! Megatron! If Megatron, the great commander says so, it means he believes in every one of our abilities. He trusts us to come and uphold the position on this base. And it is our duty as trusted soldiers of the Deception legion to uphold that belief. Think of the praise we'd get if we returned to camp with a captured base. We'd all be promoted! Primus, I don't think any one of us would have to fight another battle! ...So whatdoya say, mechs? Are you with me? Are you willing to take these steaks?"

The atmosphere had a sudden change to it during Fuseload's speech. The bots gathered around Jacob held their postures with a different attitude. One filled with determination.

Jacob also would find himself appalled by Fuseload's moving words. Maybe he was wrong about the bot after all? Perhaps he really was a great leader... but just as quickly Jacob was filled with hope, it was distinguished when he realized his current position. All of these robots were war-hardened killers. He? He was just a teenager. He didn't know squat about fighting in a war.

"Who is with me! For the glory!" Fuseload roared, raising a fist in the air.

"For the glory!" They else echoed back, much louder. The pumped mechs would begin to pound their feet into the metal floor of the tank, sending violent tremors into its frame.

"Yah!" Fuseload screamed back. Swiftly, he'd activate the hanger and lower the door to the back of the tank.

Jacob stood frozen as he watched as the door slowly descended to the ground. When it cracked open, a bright sunlight flashed through the cracks and washed over the group. As the door lowered farther, more sunlight poured in, causing the teen to react with resentment by cowering away. For some reason, the white rays stun his robotic eyes, like as if it had been a millennia since they had last beheld it.

When the ramp finally struck the ground, Fuseload addressed his infantry once more," Onwards deceptions! May glory find us all in battle today!" Turning on his heel, the large robot trekked down the ramp and out of sight. Jacob watched as the others followed suit and began to file out of the vehicle.

Reluctantly, Jacob trailed behind them. As he exited the claustrophobic tank, the boy was met with a wide open space that spanned out before him. Jacob blinked, his eyes still stun, but that problem wasn't what crossed his mind. Instead, he stood motionless, jaw agape in awe at what he saw. A barren desert of rust and beyond it, a city made of silver metal; Praxus. "Woah..." Jacob breathed, blown away by the marvelous city that towered above him. Thousands of clustered skyscrapers reached for the pearl-blue sky, the long and thin spires acting like their individual fingertips. The inhuman structures were nothing like on Earth. Their designs were so interconnected and complex, how arches riddled the spaces in between them, linking each one to another in a web of twisted alloys, it was hardly comprehendible to the ordinary viewer. The eccentric metropolis was so grand, so bewildering that any onlooker would have dubbed it a masterpiece of modern art. Basked in sunlight, the spires sparkled gloriously, as if the city, Praxus, was proud of its own beauty.

"Let's go Iceblade!" Fuseload called, motioning for the daydreaming boy to return to him. The team had already started their trek to the city, but had been forced to stop when they saw Jacob was trailing behind.

Jacob turned his head," R-right" he replied back and scampered off to rejoin the group. He chuckled in embarrassment when he approached them, his faceplate growing hot. The impatient robots would shortly tease him for his absence and then part away to set off again. Gazing at the metropolis once more, Jacob would feel his stomach tighten and curl up.

Jacobs's smile fell from his face. His impeding events loomed over him like a dark cloud.

Beginning to walk between the other bots, the anxious teen couldn't help keep himself from asking questions. What was he going to find in there? Was his fate in Praxus already written? Was today going to be his last?

* * *

 **Sorry for cutting it short and the long wait everyone! I had finals to study for, so writing this chapter was delayed a bunch. I had a lot more planned for this chapter, but I figured I'd cut it off here.**

 **Let me know what you think of Fuseload and his gang!**

 **All comments are very much appreciated!**


	4. Chapter 4 Domination

**Domination**

* * *

Jacob estimated that they had been hiking for about an hour. The infantry was now well emerged within the city. As he had gotten a better look at the metropolis, Jacob quickly came to realize that the city wasn't as perfect as he once thought. He could see why Praxus was known for being a front for whatever war these bots were fight in. Many of the skyscrapers were reduced to rubble or there were others that seemed they were on the verge of collapsing. Craters and bullet holes speckled the surfaces of the buildings. It was very unsettling to see the city so empty and abandoned, like it were a ghost town. Every so often, Jacob would catch a glimpse at what appeared to be a lifeless robot, abandoned on the side of the road, but none of his companions so much as looked at the husks. Instead they kept their heads fixed forward, which made Jacob wonder if what he had seen were real.

The timid teen looked left to right. The clustered city had many twists and turns. It was suitable for evading pursuers. Jacob wondered if maybe he were fast enough, could he ditch the group and runaway? Peering down at his robot body, Jacob realized that it wasn't the case. He barely knew how to control this alien skeleton- only about an hour ago did he manage to walk properly- never less running from skillfully trained soldiers. Jacob sighed. Even if he did manage to slip away from them, he didn't know what he'd do after that. Could he figure out how to survive by himself on this strange unknown planet? He doubted he could.

Jacob glanced at the robots surrounding him, noticing their movements had changed. They were now slow and somber and hardly any words were being exchanged. Before, everyone had been so rowdy after Fuseload's speech, but the mood had steadily gotten more bleak the farther they hiked. It was as if everyone were walking to their graves.

"You alright, Iceblade?" Orbit asked, noticing Jacob's distress. His voice was lowered, so not to break the silence too much.

The question took the teen off guard," I -uh- yeah, I- I'm fine," Jacob stammered, making it apparent that Orbit's intuition was correct. Jacob looked his inquirer up and down. The mech was the same one who had welcomed him so eagerly earlier. Considering how his armor was a dark-grey with a lighter milky white on the rims, Orbit's name fit him well. For he size, he was rather lean, but somehow still had the miens of packing a punch. A thick, glossy visor covered his eyes, pairing him with the resemblance of a snowboarder.

The dark-grey robot frowned," Is this your first time on the battlefront?"

Jacob nodded, but stayed quiet as he didn't want to reveal too much about his secrets. His eyes betrayed him when they glanced at the solemn Deceptions.

"Ah..." Orbit whispered, sighting Jacob's concerns," Yeah, that's normal. Don't mind them- they're just getting in the mindset for battle. These mechs all have different processors for how they prepare for things," Orbit gestured to Fuseload and the other bots surrounding him at the front of the pack. The small click was filled with the last boisterous bunch with all of them drunk on humoring each other," Fuseload and the mechs like him handle it differently; they push their problems away and focus on enjoying what's here in the now."

Jacob understood what he meant. It was quite suprising how observant Orbit was. Jacob connected the feeling to what he had typically experienced before an important hockey game. Though... when he thought about it, a little game was nothing compared to a life and death battle.

"Don't worry," Orbit chirped, as if he could read Jacob's mind," There'll be plenty allies on the front and once we arrive, overpowering those autobot scum will be as easy as spelling out 'scrap'."

Autobots? What Orbit had said only raised more questions for Jacob. Who were the autobots? Were they another species or, perhaps, judging from the name, were more robots? Then why were the robots fighting each other anyway? The queries were like a bad itch that Jacob wanted to desperately scratch, but couldn't.

Instead, Jacob forced himself to laugh at Orbit's comment. He personally hadn't found the remark funny, but knew the mechanoid would like it if he agreed. Jacob was right, Orbit seemed quite content with himself that he had cheered up the boy. Straightening up, Orbit's head turned forward and the bot fell quiet. As the silence bwteen them grew longer, Jacob realized he'd have to scramble to keep the conversation going," Uh, what do you think of Fuseload?" he quickly asked.

Orbit frowned, his visor brightly reflecting the sunlight when his head swiveled to face Jacob," What do you mean?" he questioned, confused by what the newbie meant.

"I- uh... I mean do you think he's a good leader?" Jacob added.

Understanding, the grey-mech nodded," At first, Fuseload might come off as... outgoing," Otbit started, pausing to find the right word," and that can rub off the wrong way on some bots, but honestly, once you get to know him, you'll find he has a big heart and cares for the well-being of everyone around him. Because of that, I think he's good at gathering support from others. Not to mention that he's a great speaker too- you saw how he uplifted everyone earlier." Orbit chuckled. He rubbed his chin thinking back to older memories," Fuseload is really quite popular. All the time, you hear rumors going around about his heroic- and probably exaggerated -feats in battle. A lot of bots look up to him. I can't tell you of a time when I met a Decepticon who hadn't heard of Fuseload-" Orbit stopped, glancing down at Jacob, he gave the strange boy a weird look," How long did you say you were registered with the Decepticons?"

Jacob's heart skipped a beat. Biting his lip, he responded with short hesitation," I just registered only recently."

"Oh, right." Orbit bobbed his head as if he were recalling the unshared information," Anyway, believe or not, but I'd say Fuseload's name rivals that of even Megatron."

There was that name again. _Megatron._

"Wow, even Megatron?" Jacob acted out his amazement, though it was hard with what little context he was given.

"Yep," Orbit said, glad that his listener was so attentive," I consider Fuseload to be a considerable candidate if our great leader were to perish. Even if he's not ranked second in command, Fuseload has a lot of supporters," before continuing, the mech looked left to right and hushed his voice," Don't tell anyone I said anything, spark, but I think that the mech could even gain the support to overthrow the entire regime if he wanted."

So Megatron is the leader of the Deceptions, Jacob realized. Putting the pieces together, he was starting to get a grasp on the strange world he was put into. And apparently, although given his deceiving appearance, Fuseload was a lot more important than he had initially thought.

It suddenly dawned on the boy that if he was so important, it was possible that Fuseload knew about his secret. If Fuseload knew, then what were the chances everyone else knew? What were they going to do to him? His eyes fell on Orbit, the dark grey robot faced naively forward and showed no signs of being unsettled by Jacob's presence. Right. His crazy thoughts had gotten him carried away. If everyone knew Jacob wasn't who he said he was, they would have definitely called him out on his fake name and probably would have watched his actions more closely when they arrived.

Jacob was stressing over nothing. Right now, he had two missions to focus on; not dying and figuring out a way home.

The pressing matter was figuring out how he was going to survive. Every second he was getting closer and closer to the battlefront. The thought of fending for his life against a bloodthirsty alien definitely made Jacob shiver. He gazed down at the empty palms of his hands. Nobody carried weapons, so was he supposed to fight with his fists? This was also another thing that confused him. If these robots were so advanced, why carry no arms? Maybe they possessed super human strength or maybe they could shoot lasers through their eyes... no... that didn't make any sense. He'd know what to do by the time the fight comes.

Jacob opened his mouth to reply to what Orbit had predicted, but was then interrupted by Fuseload's booming voice.

"Everyone! The time draws near to battle!" Fuseload shouted. He had stopped and turned to face his troops. In turn everyone had halted abruptly, almost causing Jacob to bump into the mech in front of him," We approach the Autobot stronghold! Together, with our reinforcements we will overpower those scum and claim their base for ours! We will send them back to the all spark by driving our blades into their core! Are you with me?!"

The mechanoids roared in response to their leader's call, pouding their fists on their hollow chests and stomping their heavy feet on the ground. It was like atmosphere and energy between the robots had been electrically jumpstarted. It was impressive how the words of one bot could inspire so many others.

A buzzing sensation rushed into Jacob's ears as the feeling of adrenaline coursed through him. This was life and death. If he didn't make it here, how would he ever get home? See his family and friends ever again? _See Cathrine?_ He was determined not to fail. For Catherine. Jacob found himself joining in the chants around him. His robotic frame shivered from both the excitment and nervousness, yet he was still ecstatic. He felt like he could do anything in that moment.

"Are you with me?!" Fuseload repeated, throwing his fist in the air.

"Yeah!" The crowd screamed back.

And then a gunshot rang out.

Jacob blinked.

In one second Fuseload was standing strong before him. Someone who he precieved as almost invincible. But in the next moment, the center of his proud chest had replaced by a large gaping hole.

Everything suddenly went quiet.

Fuseload stood there. His head fell to his chest and he gazed wide-eyed at the wound as though it hadn't yet registered to him what happened. He then dropped to his knees, his arms hung loosely from his sides. Looking up, Fuseload stared into the eyes of a dozen petrified robots, shock was plastered on all their face. Fuseload opened his mouth to try and say something, but instead a stream of blue liquid seeped out and dribbled down his chin. Fuseload's eyes flickered before they rolled to the back of his head and the light in them finally went dark.

* * *

 _Thanks for reading_

 _Any and all comments and follows are appreciated_

 _Until next time_


	5. Chapter 5 Condemnation

**Condemnation**

* * *

The silence that filled the air was jarring. Not a soul made a sound as each bot was stricken with the shock of what they had just witnessed. Their powerful and recognized dear leader, Fuseload, shot dead right in front of them.

Jacob stood as still as the body sprawled out in front of him. Just seconds earlier the seemingly indestructible robot had been so alive. He was rallying his men for war. Their figure of hope. Rumored to even best Megatron's leadership. But now, only a pool of blue liquid seeped out from beneath his lifeless form. A hush had fallen over the crowd as they watched the husk just lay there, like they expected him to rise back up again.

"He's... gone..." One bot spoke amidst the silence.

The boy felt himself grow sick to his stomach. Watching someone get murdered before you wasn't a pleasant sight. The innocent boy had never seen anything so gruesome in his life.

Suddenly, from the blue, more shots followed the first and the Decepticons around Jacob crumpled to the ground. Finally waken from their shock the robots shouted and ducked in confusion as more fell to the ground, plucked off like flies.

"It's an ambush!" Someone screamed," Autobots!" Another yelled, making it fully clear of what was happening. "They're shooting from the skyscrapers!" One bot cried out, pointing an extended finger to the abandoned towers on either side of them. The barrels of rifles poked out above from the darkness which shielded their attackers.

Although shaken and without a leader, the bots took action, knowing fully well that escaping this was now a matter of life or death.

"Mobilize into standard protective formation!" A voice called out in attempt to regain structure within the panicking soldiers, but the effort was quickly cut short when a swarm of new bots emerged from the dark buildings on either side and surrounded them. They were trapped. Jacob watched as the swarm of ambushers transformed their arms into large barrels and began blasting at his group with their alien technology. Bots cried out in pain and fell as their torsos were scorched with high-density lasers.

Jacob's squadron was put into a position where they had no choice but to fight. This was no longer a mission for support as it first had been presumed to be- it had now turned into a fight for survival. In return, the Decepticons brought out their own weapons, transforming their arms into guns similar to what the enemies wielded and drawing out long blades for close combat. Running ahead, the bots loudly clashed arms with the Autobot. The sound of metal striking metal filled the air.

As the chaos erupted around Jacob, he couldnt help but just watch it all unfold in front of him. Snipers from the rooftops picked off bots one by one as they fell with a sudden last cry. From the way things were heading, the entire group would soon be overpowered. Jacob wanted to run or help, but his feet remained planted. He body remained frozen, still in complete shock from the fast turn of events.

One bot emerged from the clashing soldiers around him. He was covered in light blue liquid and a crazed, adrenaline-fueled look was dislayed on his face. He whirrled around, searching for his next opponent when his eyes fell on jacob. He quickly charged at Jacob, wielding a large saber in his hand.

Jacob sharply in took a breath of air, knowing what was coming at him, but had no time to react. The sword came down and slashed him across the chest. The boy was sent crashing to the ground with a sharp pain filling his chest. Jacob gasped, finally breaking free from his shock. His hand shot up to his wound where it became soaked in the blue liquid that belonged to his robotic body.

Looking up, Jacob watch as his attacker raised their arms for the final blow. Paralyzed, the boy squeezed his eyes shut and accepted his fate. He waited, but when the moment never came, Jacob carefully cracked open an eye. He found Orbit standing over him. The grey bot was using his own weapon to block his opponent's blow. With a great deal of force, Orbit thrusted forward and sent the Autobot stumbling back.

"O- orbit?" Jacob croaked, unable to believe his eyes.

"Get out of here spark!" Orbit growled through gritted teeth, parrying a swing from the same bot," You're too young to die just yet!"

A trickle of blue ooze seeped from his lips. Jacob saw Orbit was covered in dozens of gashes and bleeding wounds. The bot was in horrible condition, yet he still held on strong against Jacob's attacker. Parrying back and forth with heavy breaths. Pure amazement filled Jacob's eyes. Never had he ever beheld someone as spectacular as Orbit. The Decepticon was fighting with so much injuries, yet had selflessly thrown himself in front of him. To save him.

"What are you waiting for?! Go Iceblade, go!" Orbit barked, shaking Jacob from his thoughts.

He wouldn't object. Scrambling to his feet, Jacob clutched his burning wound and turned away. Giving one last glimpse back, Jacob watched Orbit struggle up against the huge bot. Limping on one leg, he seemed very weak. A twist of regret filled the boy's stomach as he ran off, leaving Orbit, but he didn't know what to do. Instead, Jacob gave himself the excuse of listening to what Orbit had ordered.

Ahead of him, the furious battle was still raging strong around him, but at least Jacob knew how to move again and wasn't paralyzed now. Dodging blades and arms, the boy weaved through the crowd. Looking ahead, Jacob saw the edge of the battle near the end of the street. There an empty allyway never appeared so welcoming. Jacob ducked under a swinging arm and sidesteped another fight. Adrenaline pumped through him as all he could focus on was reaching his escape. Limping forward, Jacob managed to avoid any other slashes thrown his way. Then finally, Jacob broke free and stumbled into the empty space. Jacob shuddered as he let out a breath of relief and winced when he had shifted his chest too much, but he was free.

"Hey you!" a sudden feminine voice shouted from behind Jacob.

Turned around, Jacob saw from the corner of his eyes another robot standing at the opposite end of his ally. Jacob took no time in introductions. He whirled away and took a dash towards the abandoned city. As he ran he fought through the screaming pain in his chest. Gazing ahead at the towering, broken structures, he was sure to lose her somewhere in the destroyed metropolis. Behind him, he could hear the pounding feet as Autobot ran after him. Tall skyscrapers pelted past him as he searched for any sort of cover or sign to lose her with.

Unaware of where he stepped, Jacob ran right into a large hole in the center of the walkway and fell in. With a short scream, he plummeted down and crashed into another walkway a few stories down. In the process striking his head on a loose piece of rubble. Jacob laid on his back, his arms sprawled out and unable to move. His head hurt and everything spun.

The hole above illuminated a bright light from the sky. Then a shadow was casted down on him as his pursuer peeked below, blocking the sunlight. Swiftly the figure jumped down, landing with a hollow thud of her two feet.

Jacob shivered as a cold feeling crept up his spine. This was it. He had no where left to go, no where to run and no one to come rescue him. It was hopeless. He was sure of it this time; this was his end. Closing his eyes, Jacob fought at the temptation to pass out and thought of home. He thought of his family. They must be so worried, searching all over for him, hoping he wasn't dead. He thought of Catherine. Heartbroken and alone.

 _Oh Catty... I'm so sorry... I couldn't get back to you,_ he whispered.

The robot neared Jacob slowly. A glistening dagger flashed in her hand.

Groaning, Jacob shifted his head to face his executioner. He wanted to appear tough in his final moments and look her in the eye as she killed him.

A small gasp suddenly escaped the autobot when she stopped and got a clear look at his face. The small blade slipped from her fingers and fell to the ground with a clatter. The echo it created rang out and then the air fell quiet.

"D- Draft?" she asked in disbelief, breaking the silence.

However, Jacob was unresponsive. Her voice was merely a hum in the background as everything when fuzzy. His head ached and felt warm and wet at the back where it had been struck. Then his vision blurred. His bewildered executioner at his feet became a smudge of color and once again, the boy's world was swallowed in darkness.

* * *

Catherine awoke with a jolt. Her head stun badly and her body was terribly sore.

"Ugh... what happened?" she groaned. The last thing she remembered was hiking in the woods with Jacob and then a blinding white light. Blinking her eyes, she let her vision focus. A high-pitched yelp escaped her when she found she was looking face to face at a beady-eyed, red monster.

The monster's face grew distorted in disgust by the sudden sharp sound she emitted," My my my, what shrieky one you are," it said, straightening up, lightly knocking some sensation into the side of its head," The first one wasn't as nearly as loud as you."

When the being had stepped back, Catherine gathered that it was some kind of robotic humanoid and that she was trapped in a large metallic room filled with strange objects," W-what are you? Where am I? I demand you take me home!" Shaking her fists, Catherine found that her wrists were bound to the metal platform behind her. But instead of seeing her actual body strapped down, to Cathrine's bewilderment, she saw instead that it was now a robotic metal one, similar looking to her abductor's," What did you do to me! Where's my real body!"

The red figure clicked his tongue and crossed his arms," Looks like you're a fast learner. At least you aren't as slow as the last one; he was dreadful."

Catherine stammered and was at a loss for words. This was all happening too fast. How did she go from a date to robot abductor's science experiment? "W- who are you? What's going to happen to me?" she asked, this time more slowly and carefully than her previous questions.

"Ahh, that's better," the red being sighed in relief," Your loud inquiries were really hard on the ol' audio receptors. I'm not getting any younger, you see," the bot explained, waving a dainty hand in the air. Looking back at Catherine blank face, the robot saw he was getting off track and cleared his throat," Allow me to introduce myself, you miss are in the presence of Knockout; the greatest medic in the entire cosmos."

In response, Catherine harked up a big spitball and spat it into Knockout's face.

"Gah!" the robot screeched, wiping the blue goo off with his forearm," You imbecile! I'd kill you right now if you weren't important to my project!"

"Where's Jacob?" Catty demanded, ignoring his threats," What did you do to him?"

"The last specimen?" Knockout retorted with a wicked laugh," Oh, he's long gone! He was just the prototype of my experiment and Megatron's already sent him off to die!"

She couldn't believe her ears. Jacob was gone? The robot was wrong, he can't be dead! Why was all of this happening to her?! With a loud, angry scream of denial Cathrine managed to writhe around and free one of her legs before proceeding to kick the red bot in the shin.

"Gah!" Knockout cried out again, this time louder and bending forward to grab his damaged leg," Do you even know how long this is going to take to buff out?" he shouted at her, covering his sensitive ears," I take it back- you're worse than your predecessor!"

Catherine continued to kick and twist in her constraints, but it was to no use. She couldn't escape. Going limp, the girl let her chin fall to her chest," Don't you have any sympathy?" she sniffed, trying her hardest to not give in and cry. _Oh Jacob..._

Knockout strained his face," Don't tell me you're going to cry? Ugh."

Her lip trembling, Cathrine swallowed and shook her head. Gazing back up at him, she straitened her face in defiance," What do you want from me?" she spat.

The bot smiled," Ah, finally, getting down to business. Good," Grabbing a nearby tablet, Knockout turned back to Catherine while scanning its contents," Since my last test was only a prototype it was bound to have minor defects- even by my standards. But you, I have improved you and have enhanced your abilities to become a recyclable, stronger soldier. Even now I can tell the difference," Knockout explained, gesturing to her broken leg strap," No ordinary cybertronian would have broken my restraints, so I say progress has already been made." Knockout hummed, marking a few notes in his tablet.

Soldiers? Cybertronians? Was he producing a super soldier for some kind of war? Catherine's mind raced, but on the outside, she continued to remain calm," So what? Am I going to be your guinea pig that you're going to test? What happens after that? Will I be 'disposed' of like Jacob?"

Knockout raised a brow," Well, yes. You are effectively my... uh... guinea pig," he paused to phrased the rodent's name as it was something he had never heard of," But consider yourself lucky. It's not everyday someone gets the chance to be in the presence of myself for so long and whatever comes after that..." Knockout tilted his head back and forth, thinking, then shrugged," We'll have to find out," a devious smile crept on his face as he thought of the possibilities," Maybe... I'll torture you for ruining my finish."

Cathrine shivered. Of all the ways her life would end up, how was it that hers would end in such an awful way?

* * *

 **Thanks for reading!**

 **A change of storyline as I introduce Cathrine into the story. As it turns out, Cathrine's still alive and has also been abducted by the Decepticons.**

 **Jacob's first battle ends in pain and confusion as he faints at the hands of a new foe.**

 **What will happen to them?**

 **Please feel free to leave a review of your criticism- I love it- and if you want to support me, it's much appreciated when you guys follow or favorite me!**

 **Thanks again, until next time.**


	6. Chapter 6 Manipulation

**Manipulation**

* * *

Jacob awoke with a start. Immediately he regretted his sudden action when a split pain shot into his chest. "Ahh, "he groaned, grabbing his stomach and curling up. As the pain quickly faded away, the boy blinked. Finally, he questioned about the place where he had woken up," What..."

The last thing he recalled was being chased down by the Autobot and blacking out just before she was going to kill him. Gazing down, Jacob found that the gash in his chest had been mended up. Upon closer inspection, it appeared that the injury had been welded together like with a torch or something. _I suppose that would be the robots' way of stitching someone up,_ Jacob slightly remarked to himself.

Then Jacob stopped. _But wait... that doesn't make any sense... then who saved me?_

Swiveling his head around, Jacob hoped to find some answers. It was a small room- well, at least for his robot body- the walls were blank and Jacob seemed to have been laid upon a metal, flat surface. In the corner there was a door and on the opposite side of the room there was a shelf with an array of items presented on it. Curiously, a mirror was hung on the wall at the base of his bed-like structure. From where he sat, Jacob gazed across the room into the mirror where he saw... himself? Jacob touched his face and watched as the figure in the reflection mimicked him.

 _Huh._ Jacob never really had the chance to see himself in this new body of his and... it certainly was strange. It wasn't like it was often he saw another person when he looked into a mirror. It was very surreal.

Sliding off the elevated surface, Jacob slowly moved towards the mirror for a better look. Once he stood directly in front of the glass, the boy looked himself up and down.

He appeared to have the body of a rather thin bot compared to those he had seen so far. It was a little unusual for him to inhabit something so lanky. Back on Earth he was a hockey player, so naturally he was well-built; a little bulky too, but he fine with that. Although, even if this frame was thin, it still was fit- probably agile. He was colored mostly a grayish white and had red lines running down the crevices and lining the edges of his armor. A thick, blocked-like shape jutted out from his forehead and two circular plates covered the area where his ears would've been if he had still been human. Gazing into his eyes, he found they were a vibrant yellow and there was a slight luminescence about them. Intrigued, Jacob inched closer to the glass until his faceplate touched his reflection. Jacob studied his eyes, noting how complex the thread-like wires were and how all gears meshed together so cohesively.

The observation made more questions pop into Jacob's head: _Where did these robots come from? Did someone create them? Whoever did, must've been seriously smart._ The thoughtful boy placed a finger on his chin, _Maybe they're like humans and they evolved. In that case,_ _do they reproduce? How would they even evolve or reproduce if they're made of hunks of steel?_ Jacob stopped suddenly. A dirty thought popped into his head that needed answers. Eyes drifting downward he eyed his pelvic area...

Right on cue, the only door in the room slid open and a new figure walked in, "D-draft?"

Jacob turned, flustered, it was like his parents had just walked in on him. But to his surprise, he found that it was the same Autobot who had pursued him that stood there. A confused look flashed onto Jacob's face, "I-" The boy was interrupted when the mechanoid suddenly rushed forward and embraced him with a hug, "Uh..." he said, getting more perplexed by the second. _Didn't she want to kill me?_

"We thought you were gone," the feminine bot sniffed, squeezing Jacob even tighter, "I still believed though, Draft. Somewhere inside me knew you were still alive..."

The awkward moment ended when another bot entered through the door. This one was very tall and had an authoritative aura about him, "Aether..." he spoke in a deep, yet calm voice, "I think it would be unwise to approach this impersonating Decepticon."

"B-but Prime!" Aether objected, placing a hand on Jacob's shoulder, "It's Draft!"

"Aether, open your optics!" butted in another mech, emerging from the entrance. This bot was black and white. He looked very cross with the one called Aether as he folded his arms," You of all bots should know Draft was killed in battle! He's a fake! There have been numerous accounts of Decepticons pulling this very trick to sneak inside Autobot lines and spy on us."

Aether winced, hurt by his harsh words.

Jacob looked left to right, unsure of what was going on. _Did they mistake him for one of theirs? What would they do to him if they found out he was truly an imposter?_ Jacob thought back to when Fuseload and Orbit had preached about how awful the devious and scary Autobots were. He could only imagine with a shiver of what they'd do to him.

"Prowl is right, Aether," the one called Prime, interrupted, "We should proceed with caution."

Aether's shoulders slumped forward for a moment, "But sir..." she started, "Optimus Prime... I don't mean to overstep here, but those were instances with bots who looked _similar_ to those MIA. Draft's appearance here is uncanny to the one we all know. I mean, look!" Aether quickly grabbed Jacob's arm and presented it to the two others, "He even has the same scar on his hand that Draft got when we both were just sparklings! Am I right Draft?"

Jacob blinked, a little taken off guard by the position Aether put him into. A brief instance inside him wanted to tell the three the truth and that he wasn't who they really thought he was, but the boy rejected that notion. He couldn't trust these strangers. The best option for now was to play along to ensure his survival, "Y-yeah. Don't you guys remember me? It's me- Draft!" Jacob said, lying right through his teeth.

Optimus Prime paused and tapped a finger on his chin, "I suppose you're right Aether... and I don't doubt it's you, Draft. I just wanted have precautions. Things around here have been at lot more harder since your disappearance, Draft," his gaze shifted back and forth between Jacob and Aether, "But it doesn't hurt to take careful measures. Aether, can you please escort Draft around the facility, it's been a while and a lot of things have changed, I don't want you taking your optics off him."

Jacob let out an inward breath of relief. Prime was convinced and his acting had paid off.

"Optimus!" Prowl piped up with his hands extended at Jacob," This is obviously an imposter! He-"

Prime held out a hand, stopping Prowl from continuing," Now Prowl, Draft is an old friend of ours. If anything goes wrong, Aether will be there to warn us," he explained. At that, Prime turned and exited the room.

Aether had enthusiastically nodded along with Optimus Prime's words while Prowl let out a defeated huff," Fine... but if I catch so much of a whiff of something strange up with you, _Draft_ , you're dead." the bot hissed, adding a sarcastic tone when he said the name, before following his leader out and leaving Aether and Jacob alone.

Jacob's heart skipped a beat from Prowl's threat. Assuring himself, the boy promised he'd get out of this place the moment he got the chance.

Aether spun around to face Jacob," I can't believe you're alive!" she cried, enveloping him in another hug," You have to tell me everything! What happened that day?"

Jacob stiffened up when she hugged him. It was incredibly awkward knowing he wasn't who she thought he was," Uh... what did you think happened?" Jacob slowly asked in return. Being sly, he could get some information out of her while he could.

Wiping a tear, Aether looked up at Jacob," Oh Draft... we- we were on patrol... then... we were ambushed and t-then you told me to run to get help while you held them off.  
I ran as fast as I could, Draft, but by the time we came back you were gone!" Aether told him in a shaky voice," All that we found was your spear and a pool of energon..." as her voice drifted off, her eyes fell to the ground in a shameful manner," I shouldn't have left you Draft..." she whispered, tears welling up in her eyes," Ever since that day, I regretted leaving you... everyone thought you were as good as dead..."

A lump was caught in Jacob's throat. _Poor Aether..._ Jacob's guilt made his head swim around in circles. Did all of this mean he was transferred into the body of Draft? That would mean that the real Draft was gone. Jacob felt awful. Not only was he impersonating someone who was dead, but he might be inhabiting their old body! The boy firmly shook his head. No... it wasn't _his_ fault he got abducted and forcibly transferred into this metal shell; it was that scientist called Knockout who did this to him! For now, Jacob was going to do whatever it took to get back home. As horrible as it sounded; it even meant if he had to lie to this brokenhearted robot. Getting home was his priority.

"Draft?"

Startled, Jacob's eyes shot up to Aether's concerned face. "Ahh... sorry," he apologized, scratching the back of his head," Was lost in thought..."

"Oh?" Aether blinked, the edges of her lips curled up in a short smile," What were you thinking about?"

"Um... just how glad I am to be back here Aether," Jacob replied with a fake smile.

The girl smiled back at him again, wiping a tear from her eye," Okay..." there was a short pause of silence," Well, let's go- I'm going to show you everything that's changed around here since you've been gone."

The two took off and the happy autobot proceeded give Jacob a quick tour of the building. During their walk Jacob learned that this Autobot camp was located in the capital building of the city. It was the biggest building around and was very structurally stable, making it also the safest. The two walked through a corridor and made their way out from the medical bay to the main hall. The cylinder-shaped building was designed to have a central hub in the middle it where everything branched out from. When Jacob and his accomplice emerged from the hallway, it opened up to a large hall. When Aether called it a hub, Jacob thought of something that was more simple, but when he saw it, the boy was floored with how big it actually was. He gazed up at a grand hall that was at least ten stories tall. The hall was cylinder shaped, much like the building. Each floor had an open walkway in which one could peer over the railing and see below into the hub. Great, big pillars stretched from the floor to the ceiling to hold up the behemoth of a building.

Jacob could see that this once important, luxurious building had been turned into a military camp for war. The effects of such abuse was clear. At the top, Jacob could tell that the domed ceiling once harbored skylights, but they had been removed and replaced with metal sheets. Jacob stood at the very bottom of the whole complex. The canal lengthened from a column into an L shape on the first floor. The first floor extended to what was appeared to be the old entrance to the extravagant fortress. It was blockaded over where fancy, glass doors should have been, and instead piles of stacked scrap were welded in place over it. The marble-like floor he stood on was dirty and harbored hairline fractures everywhere. The walls were mended over with scraps and no one seemed bothered enough to pick whatever trash there was lying around.

What made Jacob most in awe was how the entire hub buzzed with life. He had never seen so many of the robots in one spot. There was so many walking and going about whatever tasks that they needed to get done. It was like the whole complex was a hive full of bees.

"C'mon Draft!" Aether exclaimed, pulling on Jacob's arm," We don't have all day!"

"R-right," Jacob stuttered, following Aether through the crowd. His head pivoted around, trying to catch sight of everything. He mentally noted whatever exit he could use to escape.

Around the wide base of the first floor, multiple elevator-looking contraptions operated. Aether took him to one and they walked inside.

"Ahh, some peace and quiet," the feminine robot sighed. The doors behind them closed, muffling out all of the hub's loud noise. "You remember how much I hate loud noise, right Draft?"

Jacob slowly nodded, mesmerized by the lights that flashed by as they were carried upwards. He wasn't very comfortable in his current position. Being surrounded by so many strange aliens and the more he saw of the place, the less he believed his chances of escaping. With everything that had happened to him in such a short time, it was to no surprise with how Jacob felt like he was in a trance. All of a sudden, all the boy wanted to do was take a break and have a moment to just process what had happened to him.

Finally, the elevator hissed to a stop and the doors slid back open to a new hallway. Leading the way, Aether took him around. Lead through the capital's maze-like corridors, Jacob wondered where she was taking him. He could have tracked all of the different paths they were going on, but his head was spinning too much and he felt too exhausted to care anymore. They traveled for what seemed like forever. At the end of it all, Jacob was practically dragging his feet on the floor. In the meantime, Jacob was shown the armory, cafeteria, storage, civilian halls, control rooms and meeting hall. There was countless of others, but Jacob couldn't possibly keep track of it all.

Finally, too tired to move, the boy stopped and was hesitant to follow Aether any longer. Noticing her friend wasn't with her, Aether turned around," Draft? What's wrong?"

Jacob's eyes fell to the floor," Can I rest somewhere?" He softly asked, unsure if he was going to blow his cover," I'm just really tired and... it's been a while since I've been back here..."

Aether's smile reassured him," Of course! I'm sorry Draft I should have realized... you must've been through a lot in the Decepticon's captivity." She grabbed Jacobs hand and they started off in another direction.

It was a short trip. "We're here!" Aether cheerily announced when the pair arrived at a simple grey door. To the side of it was a lit up tablet.

Lifting his weak head and looking around them, Draft noted how the hallway was filled with many of the exact same doors," Where are we?" he croaked.

"Don't you remember? This is your old room!" Aether said pulling him closer,"The exact same way you left it. We, uh, never had to touch it anyway after you were gone... its not like we're getting any new recruits around here," the girl awkwardly chucked at her depressing joke," Anywayyy," Aether piped up when the air around them grew quiet," Let's go in." Promptly, she tapped at the tablet's screen which beeped in approval as it accepted her passcode. The thin door shuddered open and the two stepped into the dark room within," Whew! It's dark in here," Aether said. She waved her hands around and the lights flickered on.

Jacob blinked. The room was very small. Surprisingly, the robots had furniture. Jacob didn't know what to expect, but he guessed even aliens had to have a bit of decency. In the corner was a metal table and against the back wall was a couch. The room was cramped and there was little space to move around easily. Shelves were indented into each side wall, hosting various trinkets and valuables that must've belonged to Draft. On the same wall of the door, opposite of the couch was a sleek device- probably a tv of some kind.

Feeling tired, the boy couldn't help thinking out loud," Where's the bed?"

"The what-?" Aether questioned, confused by Jacob's terminology.

"I mean where do I sleep?" Jacob hastily corrected himself.

"Sleep?" Aether asked again," Draft are you okay? Maybe you rest on your berth for a bit?" she said with a concerned look on her face. "Primus, you probably haven't had a good power down since I last saw you!"

A wave of dread washed over Jacob when he saw her gesturing at the metal table and calling it his berth. _I take it back, these aliens have no decency if that's what their bed is!_ Giving up, Jacob was too tired to care. He went over and tossed himself onto the berth, cringing at the sound of metal clashing on metal.

"Primus, Draft! What's gotten into you?" Aether cried," You're not a sparkling! You're going to ruin your finish with stunts like that!"

"I don't care..." Jacob muttered, getting ill-tempered. Shifting around, he found a comfortable position and closed his eyes. Making it clear that he wanted to be left alone. _Please, I just want some peace and quiet alone..._

There was a long period of silence exchanged between the two.

"Draft..." the autobot finally sniffed," You're my best friend... when we thought you died, I believed it was all my fault for leaving you." A shaky sigh shuddered out of Aether," I realize you might be angry... I understand completely."

Jacob cracked open an eye. The guilt was clawing at his heart. He felt awful for the poor girl robot. Rousing from his sleepy state, Jacob spoke," It's okay, Aether." He couldn't help offering a little consolation for the bot.

Then blue liquid began seeping out of Aether's eyes," I- I'm sorry," she quickly began wiping away the tears," Y-you don't know how much it means for me to hear that from you."

Jacob sat up from his berth, surprised by the robot's tears," Hey! Oh my gosh, I'm sorry. It's okay, really! You don't have to cry," he spouted. Words of comfort instinctively tumbled out of his mouth. After having a girlfriend, he knew when a girl was upset," Really! It's fine, you have nothing to- oof!"

Jacobs words were cut off by a sudden embrace. Aether's arms were wrapped around his neck. Again, Jacob was taken aback. His arms slowly accepted the hug and returned the favor by lightly patting her back.

The embrace was long and embarrassing- at least in Jacob's case, so when she finally pulled away, he was relieved. Although... he'd admit it was rather nice receiving familiar touch in what seemed like forever. The hug was appreciated.

"S-sorry again.." Aether sniffed,"...Thanks."

Jacob curtly nodded, resting both of his hands on his knees.

"Um..." the bot started," If it's alright with you, could you tell me what happened to you- while you were the Decepticon's prisoner?"

Jacob would have audibly groaned if he could. She was asking a lot of him since he was going to have to make everything up. He felt he was obligated to it, though, since he was tricking her into thinking her friend was still alive. Giving in, Jacob proceeded to fabricate another lie," Well... Right after you left, I was taken captive by the Decepticons..."

He began to tell her about how he was put into a prison cell and was left there for a long time. Thinking about Knockout, he told her about a mad scientist who did tests on him while he was held captive there. Finally, he told her that he escaped one day during a test and was able to sneak aboard a soldier carrier. Jacob explained that he pretended to be one of their own and that was why when she found him, he was with the bunch of Decepticon soldiers. Jacob also told her he ran away as she chased him because he was only trying to escape the battle. Patiently, Aether stayed quiet during his entire speech. At the end, Jacob was satisfied with what he came up with; what he told her wasn't all entirely lies.

"I'm so sorry, Draft!" Aether cried when Jacob finished," It must've been awful going through all that alone."

Jacob smiled, thankful to have convinced her so easily.

"I'll... let you rest now..." she said, standing up. Giving him a weak smile, she walked over to the door. "Goodbye Draft... I'll come pick you up in a cycle?" she pondered, her hand rubbing away the last of her tears.

Jacob nodded. He wasn't sure how long that was, but it was probably enough time for him to get his bearings.

Aether tipped her head back in response, giving a short wave before exiting his room.

Left alone, Jacob flopped back down upon his berth," Christ almighty!" he breathed, rubbing his eyes vigorously. He thought he was never going to get the chance for a break. Somewhere inside him was scared that the robots didn't need sleep. A yawn escaped his mouth. _I guess I'll power down for a while,_ he thought to himself. Curling up into a ball, Jacob closed his eyes and fell asleep.


End file.
